About This Print
One of 261 prints from the series Nōgakuzue (Illustrations of Noh). The print depicts a scene from the kyōgen play Dontarō.The Play - Dontarō
Source: "Japanese Noh and Kyogen plays: staging dichotomy," Zvika Serpera , appearing in Comparative Drama, Western Michigan University, Sept. 22, 2005.In the kyōgen Dontaro two women display disruptively comic selfish devotion to the same man, though the play ends in harmony. After three years in the capital, Dontaro returns home, but his ugly wife does not believe that it is really him and sends him away. His beautiful mistress reacts similarly, and he decides to become a monk. After both women, who had not previously accepted each other, understand what has happened, they search for him together, find him dressed as a monk, try to convince him to remain with them, and agree to anything he says. Dontaro uses this situation to force the two women in a comical way to accept each other; he then makes them bear him home in their joined arms as if carrying a baby, while they sing, announcing that this is the "personal jinrikisha" (teguruma) of Sir Dontaro. The play ends with a sense of agreement and intimacy among the three characters.
For another depiction of this play see Dontaro from the series Kyōgen Gojuban.
Print Details
| IHL Catalog | #702 |
| Title | Dontarō or Dondarō (kyōgen) 鈍太郎 (狂言) |
| Series | Nōgakuzue 能樂圖繪(Illustrations of Noh) |
| Artist | Tsukioka Kōgyo (1869-1927) |
| Signature |  |
| Seal | See above. Red letter seal in a round shape: 年久 [Toshihisa] Toshihisa, seal no. 11, p. 170 in The Beauty of Silence: Nō and Nature Prints by Tsukioka Kōgyo (1869-1927), Robert Schaap & J. Thomas Rimer, Hotei Publishing, 2010. |
| Date | Date is trimmed from this print. Ritsumeikan ARC gives the dates of printing and issuance of their print, as follows: Printed on October 10, 1897 / Issued on October 15, 1897 (Meiji 30) 明治三十年十月十日 印刷仝年仝月十五日発行 |
| Edition | unknown |
| Publisher | Matsuki Heikichi (Daikokuya Heikichi 大黒屋平) [Marks: pub. ref. 029] |
| Carver | |
| Impression | excellent |
| Colors | excellent |
| Condition | good - album backing; minor soiling, light toning |
| Genre | ukiyo-e |
| Miscellaneous | |
| Format | oban yoko-e |
| H x W Paper | 9 1/2 x 14 1/8 in. (24.1 x 35.9 cm) |
| H x W Image | 8 7/8 x 13 1/8 in. (22.5 x 33.3 cm) area within printed black border |
| Collections This Print | Art Institute of Chicago 1939.2258.40; Art Research Center, Ritsumeiken University arcUP0882; University of Pittsburgh 20091209-kogyo-0202 |
| Reference Literature |
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